Chelsea's Boss Maresca Calls Pre-Match Period as His 'Worst 48 Hours' at the Club
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca remarked that the build-up to Saturday's victory against Everton was "the toughest 48 hours" of his tenure at Stamford Bridge.
The 44-year-old delivered a somewhat cryptic message in his post-match interview even after securing a 2-0 win at home through strikes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.
Those three precious points sent Chelsea once again into the English top flight's top four, perhaps improving the mood after a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the team's drought without a win to four fixtures.
However, when questioned about the full-back's assist and overall performance, Maresca unexpectedly divulged his frustration over the preceding two days at the organization.
"The way the players are eager to improve has been fantastic and this is the reason why I commend them - because with numerous problems, they are excelling after a tricky week," he commented.
"Since I joined the club, the previous 48 hours have been the worst because many people withheld support from us."
Pressed on what he meant, the former Leicester City boss elaborated: "Worst 48 hours since I joined the club because people didn't support me and the team."
When questioned if he meant people internally at Chelsea, he responded: "Broadly speaking. Overall," before clarifying when asked if it was directed towards fans or the press: "I adore the fans and we are very content with the fans."
Fitness & Suspension Crisis
Maresca also drew attention to Chelsea's ongoing fitness and disciplinary problems, noting they had been missing star attacker Cole Palmer for much of the campaign, in addition to being deprived of key midfielder Moises Caicedo to a three-match ban and forward Liam Delap to a couple of significant injuries.
"I truly applaud the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, five of them without Moises Caicedo, eleven of them minus Cole Palmer, almost all of them without Liam Delap," he explained.
"And this squad, regardless of who is playing, they are doing exceptionally. Today was 5 games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer available, we have said many times that he's our finest player but we play the vast majority of the season without our top player.
"We play five games in the Premier League minus Moises Caicedo. This is the explanation why I'm so happy for the players and it's something that I would want people outside to recognize because the work from the players is remarkable."
Chelsea's success over Everton strengthened their position in 4th place in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup last-eight clash at Cardiff and a league trip to Newcastle to come in the coming days.
Speculation Regarding Maresca's Remark
It was not immediately clear who or what caused Maresca to label the past 48 hours as the worst of his spell as Chelsea manager.
In that period, the Italian had returned with his backroom team and players from Bergamo, held a session at Cobham, attended a pre-game press briefing where he seemed at ease, and secured a win over an in-form Everton team.
It was not obvious whether any specific press stories had irked him, if social media comments played a role, or if it was something deeper from inside the hierarchy at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca specifically took care to deny that it was an issue related to the club's fans, a section of which have still have yet to fully warm to him since his arrival from Leicester during July last year.
